California, New York, Ontario and Texas leading North American destinations for FDI

The Canadian province of Ontario and the US states of California, New York and Texas attracted 33% of all FDI into North America in 2011, according to The fDi Report 2012 released by fDi Intelligence.

California was the leading destination for FDI, securing 229 projects (12% of all inward projects) and followed by the state of New York (150 projects), the Canadian province of Ontario (135 projects) and Texas (115 projects).

Fastest growing locations for inward FDI in North America revealed

The Canadian province of Alberta and the US states of New Jersey, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania have posted the most impressive growth figures. Alberta recorded a 54% growth in FDI projects, followed by New Jersey with 53%, Massachusetts (38%) and Pennsylvania (29%).

Canada looking outward

While California was the leading state in North America for outward FDI, with 629 projects in 2011, of the top 15 outward investors Ontario recorded the fastest growth in 2011, with a 50% increase in project numbers. Quebec also saw a substantial increase in outward FDI with a 33% expansion in FDI projects in 2011. Washington, Georgia, Florida, Texas and New Jersey also all saw strong growth in outward FDI.

Energy accounts for 34% of FDI in North America

The combined coal, oil and natural gas sector, as well as the renewable energy sector, were the top two categories for FDI in 2011, accounting for 34% of capital investment into North America. The ranking is reversed from 2010, when renewable energy was the leading sector followed by coal, oil and natural gas. Focus on investment opportunities in shale gas and oil is the main factor behind the change in ranking, which saw the sector increase its capital investment in North America by nearly 300% in 2011.

The US was the leading country for renewable energy projects, attracting 11% of global FDI projects in the sector. Canada was a strong performer, with much of the investment concentrated on Ontario, which was the world’s leading region for renewable energy projects in 2011. The US also leads in outward FDI in the sector - American companies remain the world’s leading overseas investors in renewable energy, accounting for 18% of global projects in 2011.

Global overview

Foreign investors have remained cautiously optimistic with slow but solid growth in FDI. The number of FDI projects increased by 5.6% in 2011, faster than the 3% increase in 2010. After declining by 14.5% in 2010, the estimated capital investment associated with FDI projects grew by 1.2% in 2011 to $860bn, indicating the beginning of a recovery in more capital-intensive sectors. The same pattern was seen in employment, with estimated direct job creation from FDI increasing by 2.5% in 2011 to 2.27 million, following a 3.5% decline in 2010.

Global FDI predictions for 2012

The FDI Forecasting Unit at fDi Intelligence is predicting a 4.4% growth in global FDI in 2012 as its positive scenario. This assumes no major economic and political crises (e.g. a Greek default), that Europe does not fall into recession, and that China’s economic growth does not slow down below 7.5%.

Referencing – please state the source as fDi Intelligence from The Financial Times Ltd.

About the fDi Report 2012

The fDi Report 2012 is published by fDi Intelligence, part of The Financial Times Limited. It draws on data from the fDi Markets database which tracks greenfield investment projects. It does not include Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A) or other equity-based or non-equity investments. Only new investment projects and significant expansions of existing projects are included. fDi Markets is the most authoritative source of intelligence on real investment in the global economy and the only source of greenfield investment data that covers all countries and industries worldwide. Retail projects have been excluded from this analysis but are tracked by fDi Markets.

The data presented includes FDI projects that have either been announced or opened by a company. The data on capital investment and job creation is based on the total investment the company is making at the time of the project announcement or opening. As companies can raise capital locally, phase their investment over a period of time, and can channel their investment through different countries for tax efficiency the data used in this report is different to the official data on FDI flows. The data from fDi Markets is more accurate and a real time indicator of the real investment companies are making in their overseas subsidiaries.

The data shown includes estimates for capital investment and job creation derived from algorithms (patent pending) when a company does not release the information. The World Bank, UNCTAD, Economist Intelligence Unit and over 100 governments around the world as well as major corporations use our data as the primarily source of intelligence on greenfield investment trends.

About fDi Intelligence

• fDi Intelligence, a division of The Financial Times Ltd, is the largest FDI centre of excellence globally. Specialising in all areas relating to foreign direct investment and investment promotion, the full suite of services includes: location advertising to generate brand awareness; industry-leading intelligence tools to develop FDI strategies and identify potential investors; and tailored FDI events and investor roundtables to meet target companies and generate business leads.

• Products within the portfolio include fDi Markets, a database tracking crossborder greenfield investment on a real-time basis; fDi Benchmark, a database which benchmarks global locations on their attractiveness to foreign investors; and fDi Magazine and its website fDiIntelligence.com.

About The Financial Times

The Financial Times, one of the world’s leading business news organisations, is recognised internationally for its authority, integrity and accuracy. Providing essential news, comment, data and analysis for the global business community, the FT has a combined paid print and digital circulation of 604,856 (Deloitte assured, 3 October 2011 to 1 January 2012) and a combined print and online average daily readership of 2.2 million people worldwide (PwC assured, November 2011). FT.com has more than 4.5 million registered users and 285,475 paying digital subscribers. The newspaper, printed at 22 print sites across the globe, has a global print circulation of 316,493 (ABC, March 2012).

Corporate location benchmarking tool

fDi Benchmark is the only online tool to benchmark the competitiveness of countries and cities in over 50 sectors. Its comprehensive location data series covers the main cost and quality competitiveness indicators for over 300 locations around the world.